Chapter 107 Peace of Mind
"How many children do you have?" Doctor Su asked again.
"Three." The word "girl" was on the tip of Mrs. Du's tongue but she swallowed it back.
"You haven't eaten anything today, have you?" Doctor Su took out two red dates from a small drawer beside him and handed them over. "Eat them. They'll replenish your qi and blood, and they'll be good for you and the baby." Qin Fangci followed up by asking, "Doctor Su, can you sell the dates separately?"
Doctor Su smiled and said, "Of course you can. You should buy some to take back for your daughter-in-law to nourish her body."
"I'd like to buy some. Doctor Su, can you tell me the price of this?"
"Others who come to buy it should charge a hundred coins per pound."
Mrs. Du was so shocked that her mouth opened wide and she even forgot to be nervous.
One hundred coins per pound, which is almost the same as a pound of dried meat. She didn’t even dare to try two pieces of the dried meat that had been made at home for such a long time.
"Doctor Su, do you mean I can get it cheaper? How much cheaper? Doctor Su, you know we have a lot of patients lately, and money is really tight."
"I'll give you one catty for ninety coins. You don't have to buy a whole catty. Just buy half a catty for her to eat for a month, and then come back to buy another half a catty next month. Your family is in business, so it shouldn't be a problem to split it in two. Your daughter-in-law hasn't taken care of herself after giving birth to several children, so her body is a little weak."
"Aside from red dates, is there anything else she can eat to nourish her? I was thinking about checking her fetal position. She's due in two months. Having come this time, it's hard to come back next time. Doctor Su, you're right. Business at home has been good lately. Otherwise, I wouldn't have been able to bring her here and spend all this money. We have three daughters-in-law, a daughter, an unmarried youngest son, and a bunch of grandchildren...but I see her belly isn't getting big, and I'm worried something might be wrong. Honestly, it's better to be alive."
Qin Fangci said this to the doctor and also to Mrs. Du.
Mrs. Du's heart finally settled back down in her stomach, and her clenched fists slowly loosened. Doctor Su, who had been taking Mrs. Du's pulse, felt it the first time. He looked at the mother-in-law and daughter-in-law calmly and smiled silently.
No matter what their family was like in the past, the doctor is happy to see them like this now.
"All medicines are toxic. The child is already this big, just try to make sure she is well fed."
For poor families in the countryside, this requirement is so high that most of them cannot afford it.
Doctor Su looked at Qin Fangci and Madam Du's expressions again and added, "It's too late to eat too much. Otherwise, the baby in your belly will grow too fast and too big, which will be detrimental to delivery."
Qin Fangci and Mrs. Du nodded together.
"She's deficient in blood and energy. Besides red dates, give her some red beans and brown sugar. You can buy these at the grocery store. Just go there..."
Doctor Su was still thoughtful and considerate. "As for the baby's position, the baby will always turn in the mother's belly. If you are worried, you can go to the third house in East Second Lane and ask Mrs. Jiang to feel it."
"Thank you, Doctor Su. Could you please prescribe two more doses of the medicine for my little daughter's condition?"
"After taking two more doses, you have to bring her in to check her pulse. I think her condition has improved and I'm going to prescribe a new prescription for her."
"Doctor Su is here today too. How about I bring her over to check your pulse?"
"That's fine. But I have to go on a medical visit soon, and I don't know when I'll be back. You need to bring someone here quickly."
"Okay, okay, I know where she is. Let my eldest daughter-in-law wait here. I'll go call someone."
Mrs. Du stood up and said, "Mom, I'll go with you."
"It's not easy for you to run when you're pregnant. Wait for me here." Qin Fangci said and ran away, leaving Du sitting there with her head down anxiously.
Doctor Su saw that she was uneasy and said to her, "You have a good mother-in-law."
Nowadays, not many mothers can afford to spend money on their daughters’ health care, and even fewer can take their pregnant daughters-in-law to see a doctor in advance to adjust the fetal position.
Mrs. Du lowered her head even more, "My mother-in-law is very good."
At this moment, the little medicine boy brought in a new patient. Doctor Su asked the little medicine boy to take Mrs. Du to the back to rest for a while, and asked the little medicine boy to pour Mrs. Du a glass of water.
Mrs. Du came to the corridor in the backyard of the medicine shop. The little medicine boy gave her a stool and poured her a cup of warm water. "Call me if you need anything."
"Thank you, thank you." Mrs. Du took the water and took a sip of the warm water. The temperature flowed down her throat and warmed her limbs little by little.
Mrs. Du thought that the next time her mother-in-law said something to her, she should think positively first.
It was a little difficult, but she wanted to work hard at it.
Her mother-in-law is changing, so she should change too.
The baby in the belly moved slightly again, as if responding to the mother.
Mrs. Du took out the red dates she had been holding in her hand, put them to her lips and took a small bite. They were sweet.
After taking a few more bites, he could feel the core inside, and Mrs. Du thought of the loquat cores he had planted before.
If such expensive red dates could be grown at home, her daughters would be able to eat them when they get pregnant in the future.
Mrs. Du gently tore off the red date flesh, being very careful as if she was afraid of damaging the date core, treating it like a treasure.
Li Yulan and Li Bosong had just finished delivering the dried meat to the teahouse when they ran into Qin Fangci who was in a hurry.
The two of them were suddenly nervous.
"Little brother, look, is that mother? Did something happen? Did a child get taken away by a beggar? I told you not to bring so many children into the city."
"Fourth sister, let's not talk about this for now." Li Baisong quickened his pace and walked towards Qin Fangci. "Mother, what happened?"
"You're here, where's Magnolia?"
"Mom." Li Yulan shouted.
Qin Fangci urged, "Hurry up, hurry up, follow me. Doctor Su will be seeing patients soon and can still check on you."
Li Baisong relaxed and said, "Mom, you and Fourth Sister go ahead. I'll go look at the bookstore over there."
"Go ahead, be careful and I'll come find you later."
"Mom, you don't need to come look for me. I'll come look for you after I finish reading."
"Okay." Qin Fangci agreed and walked away with Li Yulan.
Qin Fangci successfully examined Li Yulan before Doctor Su was about to leave, and then took Li Yulan and Mrs. Du out with two prescriptions and a bag of red dates.
"Mom, can date pits also be planted?" Mrs. Du asked cautiously and tentatively.
"These are dried dates. The seeds cannot be planted. If you want to plant them, you have to wait until the dates are ripe. Buy some green dates and eat them before planting."
Mrs. Du's excited heart seemed to be poured with a bucket of cold water.
"Don't think too much while you're eating. If you think too much, your pregnancy won't be well. I brought you here to put your mind at ease, not to cause you any trouble. Let's go to East Second Lane and ask Mrs. Jiang to feel you over. If she finds anything, don't think too much about it. We'll just listen to what the midwife says and do what she says."
Mrs. Du nodded obediently, "I know, mother."
Qin Fangci glanced at Mrs. Du and saw that she was no longer panicked. Her bitter heart finally felt a little comforted.
Take it slow, it will get better day by day.
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